Hundreds join Dublins 4,000 handbag queue

About 500 Irish women have put their names down to buy leather bags that cost at least €4,000, and can go up to €50,000. So exclusive are the leather goods that the deep-pocketed customers are not even guaranteed one at the end of their wait, which could be anything up to five years.

Despite the hefty price-tag, hundreds of Ireland’s fashionistas have rushed to join the waiting list at the newly opened Hermès store in the past fortnight.

The objects of desire are the store’s custom-made Kelly and Birkin handbags. A simple leather Birkin, designed for Jane Birkin, the English actress, starts at €5,110, increasing in price depending on the grade of the leather. Crocodile-skin versions are the most expensive and if diamonds are incorporated in the design, the price can reach €50,000.